“What do we do now?”
“We gather information.”
To be so near Karl and unable to help him is madness. My heart is shattering, but I know things will only get worse. Much, much worse.
Forty-Eight
RONAN
ELLNESARI, PRESENT DAY
The healer works on Telar for thirty minutes or so. When she leaves, the Aquila soldier is all patched up, but he isn’t sleeping. He’s awake, albeit not as agitated as he was when he arrived.
“You need to rest,” Castiel tells him.
“I can’t rest until the hybrid returns with Luna.”
“The hybrid has a name,” I grit out.
Castiel gives me an angry stare. “Watch it.”
“No, you watch it, the both of you. I’m done following whatever plan your lot has for Cheryl and me.”
“Oh yeah? And what are you planning to do, then? Travel all the way to Aquila on foot? If you manage to survive the trip, by the time you get there, a war will be raging, and your friends will most likely be long gone.”
I bristle, hating that I can’t rebuff his argument.
“Even if you found a faster way to travel…” Telar pauses, licking his dry lips. “You wouldn’t be able to breach the castle grounds. Going there would be a death sentence.”
“I’d rather die trying to save my friends than sit on my ass, waiting for Nightingale assistance.”
“You are a fool,” Castiel retorts with a sneer.
Telar touches his arm. “You need to look for Dukie, Ronwen’s cousin.”
Damn it. I didn’t even think about the healer’s son. He’s all alone.
“Did the message you received from him say where he was hiding?” I ask Castiel.
“He managed to cross the border into Hydra, but I don’t know where he is exactly.”
“He has no one now,” Telar adds. “We have to find him. I owe Ronwen that much.”
I run a hand through my hair and notice it’s shaking. How many more deaths will that bitch cause before this is over?
A sharp pain flares in my chest, making me gasp.
“What is it?” Castiel asks, alarmed.
“It’s Cheryl. She’s in distress.” I veer for the door, intent on finding her, when Queen Endaya appears in the room out of thin air, holding Cheryl’s hand.
“Ronan,” Cheryl cries out before she runs into my arms.
I pull her into a tight hug, crushing her to my chest. “I’m here, my love. I’m here.”
“It was awful,” she says between sobs.
“What happened?”
